This invention relates in general to apparatuses and methods for treating persons who suffer from enuresis, commonly referred to as bed wetting, and urinary incontinence, and in particular to those apparatuses and methods which utilize interactive control means, remote moisture sensing and remote keying.
The prior art presents moisture sensors for clothing, diapers, and bedding which sound alarms to arouse a person from sleep when moisture is detected, such as U.S. Pat. No. 2,907,841 by Campbell; U.S. Pat. No. 3,530,855 by Balding; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,810,140 by Finley.
This invention uses an enuretic treatment system for treating bed wetting. The means and methods of this invention are interactive with the person being treated. Some of the methods according to this invention are designed to communicate particularly with children, but the device and basic methods are useful to all. So in this specification and claims which follow the term "child" shall refer to and mean the person being treated for enuresis and/or incontinence regardless of the age of the person.
The treatments are primarily conducted by a programmed bedside computer which communicates to the person being treated in the forms of synthesized speech and indicators on a display. Procedural instructions are issued and verbal rewards are selectively uttered by the computer. The person being treated communicates selections and responses to the computer by means of a plurality of keys, the keys and display being parts of an operator console.
The display serves many functions as will be explained, but its basic function is as a scoreboard calendar. A urination sensor communicates with the computer which maintains a 24-hour clock and calendar. Wet nights (nights during which the person urinates involuntarily) and dry nights (no involuntary urination) are noted and recorded in the morning. When a dry night is achieved the person is rewarded verbally. If three consecutive dry nights are achieved the person receives a material reward from a parent, and a grand prize is awarded for 15 consecutive dry nights, which is considered to be a successful completion of the treatment.
Other advantages and attributes of this invention will be seen from a reading of this specification.